The Space Shuttle Endeavour atop its carrier aircraft at Kennedy Space Center, awaiting its final departure for California.

"I have worked for the space shuttle program for 12 years," says Poppino. "My father worked for the program since 1984. I was one person with a small responsibility in a large team that sent humans into space on the only re-usable space vehicle ever built. Spending those last moments with Endeavour served as a means of closing a chapter not only in my career, but in American history."